NHRA driver Scott Kalitta, 46, was killed in a fiery crash during a drag race at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park on Saturday. Witnesses said the driver was speeding at en estimated 300 mph during the NHRA Super Nationals when the engine of his Toyota Solara exploded in a ball of flames.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife, children, family, friends and competitors.
BIO|FATAL CRASH VIDEO* (0:39)|FULL COVERAGE* (7:24)
* Please use your own discretion before viewing the above videos. It includes footage of Scott Kalitta's fatal NHRA qualifying run, but is not extremely graphic in nature.
** Please exercise extreme caution and use your own discretion before viewing this video. It includes footage of Scott Kalitta's fatal NHRA qualifying run and is graphic in nature.
Scott
Kalitta, driver of the DHL Toyota Solara Funny Car
Hometown: Mt. Clemens, Michigan
Residence: Palmetto, Florida
Birth Date: February 19, 1962
Family: Wife, Kathy; Sons, Corey (6/29/93), Colin (12/17/99)
Years Racing: 27
In March of 1989 at Houston Raceway
Park, Scott Kalitta made his first professional trip to an NHRA winner’s
circle after piloting his Kalitta Flying Services Funny Car to a final
round defeat of Bruce Larson at the Fram Supernationals. Even more
impressive than the win was the fact that he was hobbled by a broken
foot. In 2008, Scott returns to competition for the third consecutive
year behind the wheel of the 7,000-horsepower, nitro-fueled DHL Toyota
Solara Funny Car. Scott raced for many successful years at the wheel of
a Top Fuel dragster before returning to the fuel flopper ranks of the
NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series in 2006.
Scott began his legendary drag racing career as a crewmember on his
father and drag racing icon Connie “the Bounty Hunter” Kalitta’s Top
Fuel entries. Scott graduated from crew guy to driver at the 1981
Winternationals where he piloted an A/Fuel dragster, which he drove
until mid-way into the 1982 season when he switched to Top Fuel.
Scott ran a limited schedule in the dragster before switching to Funny
Car in 1985. Four years later he earned his only win in the Funny Car.
At the last two events of the 1990 season, he drove both his Funny Car
and Connie's dragster. Scott became just the third person in NHRA
history to qualify a Funny Car and a Top Fuel dragster for the same
event when he qualified at Dallas that year. He became the first to
accomplish the feat for a 16-car field. At this point in his career, he
decided to dedicate all of his driving energies toward Top Fuel only and
his drag racing career took off in earnest.
In 1993, Scott finished second in the championship points standings. The
next two years, 1994-1995, he won the NHRA Top Fuel championship. In
1994, he became the first Top Fuel pilot to reach four consecutive NHRA
national event final rounds. In 1996, while trying to become only the
fourth Top Fuel driver to win more than two championship titles, he
suffered two accidents, but he went to five final rounds and won the Big
Bud Shootout bonus race at Pomona. He finished the 1996 season second in
points. In 1997, his last year behind the wheel before an 18-month
retirement, he went to two final rounds and won the Topeka event. He
finished the 1997 season fourth in points. He returned to the Top Fuel
dragster cockpit full-time mid-way into the 2003 season where he raced
until the end of 2005. He won 17 NHRA national events in his Top Fuel
career.
Scott, the cousin of his Kalitta Motorsports teammate Doug Kalitta, enjoys hunting, boating and spending time with his family when he is not racin
Source: www.kalittaracing.com
